It already has. Not that we've been big beef eaters to begin with, but I'm not paying X for one piece of meat that's now cut small enough that the asking price is laughable. For instance, my husband loves brisket, but there's no way I'm buying it when a piece that's two-thirds the size of my 12" saute pan costs over $20. The fact that it's going to shrink while cooking is adding insult to injury re that price point.

I'm starting to see it with poultry, too; however, the prices havn't risen as quickly as beef. Another example: We eat a fair amount of ground turkey. It was a reasonably-priced good source of protein. The 90% lean has shot up to around $6/lb. here; 85% lean (which is what I use), over $4/lb.

For those of us on a strict budget, it's going to be interesting. My husband is already eating more peanut butter sandwiches. I'm eating more pasta.

I read it and, frankly, that's exactly the job description for a line cook :shrug:

I can see where people might think it's harsh, though. But then again I'm betting those who think that have never worked either on the line or in any kind of foodcentric business.

Saw them for $12.99/lb. at the Fruit Center Marketplace in Milton earlier today.

Doesn't surprise me one single bit. As far as food fads go, it did last longer than I think most people expected it to.

What's next? I've heard gourmet donut shops have been popping up in places, but I can't see them making as big an impact as cupcakes with the equipment they demand.

You were the first person I thought of when I read the announcement. As I said elsewhere, I am in no way an "alternative" type, but I've always appreciated the Phoenix's candor in its reporting.

:nodding: I've only caught a couple of episodes so far, and I knew there was something about it that bothered me -- I couldn't figure out if it was the format or the hosts or both or neither or something else!

One thing that does bother me: It's so rushed it isn't funny. I realize they had to do that when choosing the teams, but even after that, I have no sense of who is who or what is what or even the food itself, even if it does look pretty on a spoon.

And what was Gabrielle Hamilton doing there anyway? That was the biggest waste of a mentor/judge I've ever seen :boggle:

"But like I said upthread, we can accept that communities like CH are designed to offer a place where food folks can duke out their opinons freely, including opposing opinions about food blogging.".

Exactly. If any of us "duked it out" so to speak, on any of those blogs, we'd create a firestorm. And I wouldn't even consider this discussion to be "duking it out" -- it's a discussion fueled by passionate food lovers :)

"I think it just attracts people who cannot normally afford to buy what the businesses are selling."

That's exactly it. And chances are people who do buy into it won't be back after the offer ends because they can't afford it on an everyday basis.

We went to Steel & Rye for a drink during their grand opening week. Very sleek and stylish with very much a "garage" feel (the building used to be an ambulance depot). I could have eaten a dozen helpings of the smoked chicken flatbread!

Parking is an issue, however. The lot is abysmally tiny, and on-street parking is dicey at best because the portion of the street where S&R is located opens up to a square of storefronts where there is limited on-street parking.

We're planning to return!

I'm a professional baker/cake decorator (almost 25 years total), and I was appalled the couple of times I've caught this show. The show I watched had a challenge for the cheftestants to ice and decorate a cake completely in buttercream -- no, brainer, it's your BASIC BIRTHDAY CAKE. All the cheftestants were completely, totally flummoxed because "all I do is fondant" and "who wants to take the time to pipe stuff?" Buddy had to show them step by step how do ice/decorate it. He did a marvellous job (obvious he has the chops), but most of the cheftestants still didn't get it. I'm watching this, mouth hanging open, muttering, "And these people consider themselves DECORATORS?!?" Because that's exactly what they are: decorators, NOT bakers.

As for Buddy...I got his Cake Boss book out of the library and I nearly cried reading it because it's so obvious he's one of the last of the old school bakers out there. I can't blame him for wanting to cash in on the food competition bandwagon. I just wish, for the sake of the show, he could find the balance between actual competition without become FN Challenge stuffy AND not coming off like an utter ass on camera.

The Brockton MB has the exact same layout. I never thought much of it until, for some reason, one day it dawned on me that most supermarkets are laid out the other way around, and MB's reason not to follow it is...? For kicks I decided to start in Produce and work my way to Dairy. Three quarters of the way through I realized I needed something in Frozen, which meant running across the store and back. A-HA!

I would think they would become easily soggy if they were premade :nodding: I've never seen them sold anywhere either, but I've got a couple of recipes in my cookbook archive.

Oh, my mother adored the strawberry tarts too! It was her only indulgence whenever we went "in town" to shop. I never wanted to try one because, in my child's mind, dessert HAD to be chocolate!

I only know because they've got a sign advertising it!

I'd imagine it's because everyone thinks of them as foremost a bakery? I know they have pizza, but I never think of them when it comes to pizza.

Unchained is vastly underrated, IMO. They're now our go-to takeout place. They just recently put in a grill and are now offering burgers in addition to expanding their sub offerings.

Wonderful recap as always, Linda!

Yeah, that shocked me too. I don't know what to make of it, though -- on the one hand, the veterans do have an unfair advantage. On the other hand, it's also their chance for redemption. They're also not recent vets. If they were, I'd be more inclined to be irritated.

I've got Good Morning America on right now, and they sent a reporter in there with a hidden camera to see if the review was justified. The reporter's opinion? The calamari was awful, but the fries were definitely hot, greasy, and spicy.

Chopped
Sweet Genius
Barefoot Contessa
any of those FN Challenges that involves cake

I admit, I'm a reality competition fan. Food porn doesn't interest me as much as how someone puts something together. If it's not reality competition, show me how to put something together without all the fluff :points to Ina:

It seemed to me that he intentionally threw his chance off the bat, as though he knew he was brought in as a ringer to round out the playing field. What else would possess him to make himself lunch during the challenge?

It's interesting, though, how much they parrot each other, especially those I call the "cutesy" ones -- very reminiscent of how PW was before the media storm and FN came knocking. The thinking behind that kind of blogging is wanting every member of your readership to feel like they're your best friend, here's a secret, blah-blah-blah, oh, isn't this precious! And you're all precious for reading me and I love you so much! Oh please, I'm ready to gag. The sad thing is there are a lot of good recipes in between that muck.

It's very much a LOOK AT ME I'M A BLOGGER! contest, especially among the younger set.

Yes, I can scroll through it (I usually do, btw), but more often than not I find myself not visiting those particular sites. Part of me feels I shouldn't have to scroll through the muck to get to the recipe. No wonder why I'm now visiting epicurious and the other databases.

No you're not. I love how their cakes are decorated, but everything else is overrated IMO.

OMG, I lived on those pitas all the time! They were my go-to for a quick lunch or light dinner. I remember when they disappeared from the shelf of the only store near me that carried it. They couldn't tell me why they stopped carrying it, so I figured maybe the bakery went out of business?

Since this thread started I've been hunting around for them. Unfortunately there isn't a Middle Eastern enclave near me, so I'm hoping one of the grocery chains will start carrying it again!

I'll hop on the ranty bandwagon!

I've stopped reading many food blogs because of what I call the "cutesy" factor. Long introduction that makes you think you're the blogger's best friend, everything is sunshine and butterflies, they profess their love for YOU in hopes of you swooning in ecstasy of their greatness in the comment section. And all this is BEFORE they start talking about the recipe, never mind the actual recipe .

I'm so tempted sometimes to post something like, LISTEN CUPCAKE JUST GIVE ME THE @$(&@$^%&* RECIPE AND SHUT UP! But of course I'd ever actually do that.

In most cases, you're no doubt correct. However, you'd be surprised how many noncooks surf all kinds of food sites. One of my friends is an adamant FN/RR hater and will always turn to epicurious first because "they're the experts".

+1

I have friends who would consider that a recipe. They're not cooks. They don't particularly enjoy cooking, but do so to feed their families. If they ever expressed interest in such a dish, they would HAVE to have some kind of reference because they're not confident in their skill set.

We're looking at this from the other end, so yeah, to us it's a no-braner.

The only issues re Russo's and MB -- the two places already mentioned -- is that they'd both be hikes from the Quincy/Milton/Dorchester area (I'm taking it you're looking for someplace local?)

Price-wise and decent quality, IMO, goes to Hannaford. Their produce IMO is the best bang for your buck out of all the supermarket chains in the area.

If it were quality first and price second, I'd pick the Fruit Center over in East Milton Square. Wonderful produce, but you pay the price for it.

Update: The building has been demolished. There's a fence around the property now, along with a couple of construction vehicles. I noticed it on my way home from shopping this afternoon.

+1